


Number Fifteen

by lawyerdonut



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Game: Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, Game: Kingdom Hearts II, Gen, Heartless (Kingdom Hearts) - Freeform, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Mission Fic, No Smut, Not Canon Compliant, Not enough people write about Xigbar :(, Organization XIII (Kingdom Hearts), POV Second Person, burger king foot lettuce, its not that bad really, no beta we die like men, number fifteen, xigbar is lonely
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-21
Updated: 2019-12-17
Packaged: 2021-02-18 13:04:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21511510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lawyerdonut/pseuds/lawyerdonut
Summary: Evex has worked for the Organization for years doing janitorial and administrative work. One day, she finally gets promoted to being Number XV. Her first mission, however, doesn't go so well.[Written in 2nd Person.][TW for Implied/Referenced Suicide.]
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	1. The First Day

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic that I've published, most of the time they rot in my Google Docs. A few things to note about the universe this fic takes place in:  
> Dusks and lesser Nobodies clean the castle along with higher Nobodies that aren't technically part of the Organization yet.  
> This fic takes place about two months after Roxas arrives.

Mission Type: Training

Assigned Members: Xigbar and Evex

World: Wonderland

Restrictions: None

Objective: Teach Evex the basics of a mission.

Mission Lender: Saix

After years of administrative and janitorial work, Saix had finally given you a mission. The downside, however, was your mission partner. Xigbar. The Organization’s second member, he is a master of recon and a total jerk. He let you know whenever you missed a spot in his room, even if it was cluttered to the brim with ridiculous weapons. Xigbar was very keen, able to pick up on minor details many members couldn’t. He was also able to get on your very last nerve.

“Are you serious, Saix? I gotta teach  _ another  _ newbie?” Xigbar nearly screeched when he got the assignment.

“Xigbar, she is not a ‘newbie.’” Saix’s tone dripped annoyance. “Evex has diligently worked for the Organization for years doing the work none of you wanted to do. She has just been reassigned duties. It is your job as a skilled reconnaissance member to teach. Now go.” He turned away from Xigbar, facing the moon. Xigbar looked at you.

“Guess you get to spend the day with me, kiddo. How about that, second one in two months…” Xigbar opened up a Corridor and pushed you in. 

“Hey!” You yelped when you entered Wonderland six feet in the air, plummeting down to the ground. Thankfully, you didn’t land on your keys. Xigbar gracefully landed next to you. “What was that for?”

“Get some thicker skin, kid. Not everyone is going to be as nice as me. Now let’s get this over with so you can go back to cleaning toilets.” Xigbar pulled open the door and held it for you with a narrowed eye and a sarcastic smile, then slammed it behind him. 

The door led to a room you’d been to before, when you had to clean up some messes that Sora and his friends left behind. You let your feet carry you a few feet into the room before you stopped abruptly just to get Xigbar to bump into you. 

“Watch it, shortstuff. Keep acting like that and you’re getting reported to-”

“To Saix? Not like you have the cleanest track record, Xigbar.” You turned to face him, hands on your hips, smug smile on your lips. Xigbar was a lot taller than you, but you stared right into his golden eye. Unexpectedly, he laughed.

“You got a lot of moxie, kid. I like you.” He paused, letting you stare at him in shock for a few moments. “Uh, hello? Earth to Evex? You want to do the mission now?”

“Uh. Yeah. Sorry.” You shook your head and stepped back.

“Okay. The first thing about recon is look for the unnoticed. Sounds simple, right?” You nodded, and he chuckled. “As if. The unnoticed is most likely hiding in plain sight. Here, take my hand.” He held out a hand and you looked at it skeptically. “Oh, come on, kid. I don’t bite.” You took his hand and could have sworn you felt him squeeze it for just a millisecond. No, it was probably just an illusion.

Xigbar teleported you both up to the top of the giant table where two identical bottles lay. Both had similar labels, except for a few minor differences. He cleared his throat.

“Okay. These two bottles. What do you see?”

“They’re big.”

“Nice, Einstein. What else?”

“The one on the left has a more sparkly label, and the right has a tape label.”

“Good. Anything else about the labels?”

“Um,” You inspected the labels, but nothing stood out. “No.”

“What do they say?”

“Drink me, but all Wonderland drinks say that.”

“Oh, you are so close, yet so far.” Xigbar moved you out of the way and stood by the bottles. While they towered over you, he was easily taller than them. “These bottles are empty.” He punctuated this with a knuckle rap on the glass.

“So?” You crossed your arms and raised your eyebrows, waiting for him to explain.

“So? Sweetheart, that means someone drank them. Look closer.” He shoved you forward. “See these scratches? They’re deep, and in large grooves.. Looks like someone fought somebody here.” Xigbar teleported to the top of the left bottle, sat on it, and glanced at you. “Come on.” 

Your legs gave way as you fell, but you landed on the top of the bottle, balance shaky. You glared at him.

“Like I’d hurt you,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “There’s dried pieces of the drink on the glass, so whoever drank this is long gone by now.” Xigbar sighed and hopped off the bottle, tipping it dangerously. “That’s it. Let’s go.”

“That’s it?” You hopped off too, though with a lot less grace.

“Yep. Unless you want to practice, which you can do by yourself.” He summoned a Corridor of Darkness and walked about halfway into it before turning and giving you a questioning look.

“I want to make sure that I’m doing it right. Come on, it’ll take three minutes.” You stepped forward, snatched his hand, and pulled the man back onto the table.

“You got a lot of nerve, kiddo.” His eye swept the room, looking for something for you to examine. “Go to the fireplace. Tell me what you see.”

You smiled and hopped off the table, happy to be actually doing something. Reaching the fireplace, you realized there were several slashes and dents in the brick. Looking up, you saw Xigbar sitting on the edge of the table, watching you.

“There’s a lot of dents in the brick. Looks like someone had a fight here, too. Hmm.” You placed your hand on the wall, feeling the roughness, and seeing some sort of burned plant. “Some plant residue. It’s charred. Magic was obviously in use.” Stepping inside the fireplace, you saw embers. It was still hot. “Uh, Xigbar? Someone was here. Recently. They’re still here, I think.” The hair on the back of your neck stood on end. Whoever was here was dangerous and you needed help to fight. You felt a hand on your shoulder and saw the older man right behind you, holding both arrowguns.

“Think I’m going to let the new kid get hurt? As if.” Just as he loaded his arrowguns, a plucky kid and two companions came running.

“Xigbar! What are you doing here?” Now that he was closer, you could see the kid was Sora with his dumb friends. Sora had a keyblade, as always.

“Same thing you’re doing, kiddo. Trying to help.” Xigbar lifted one arrowgun and rest it on his shoulder. You silently summoned your vines, curling them around your wrists. “Why don’t you get out of here before things get ugly?” 

“And let the Organization win? Never!” The kid crouched into a battle stance.

“Fair enough.” Xigbar waved a hand and the table and chairs floated to the ceiling and stayed there. He glanced at you and his face flickered with worry before he saw your vines, then he smiled and turned back to the kid and his friends.

Sora charged at Xigbar, while his friends came after you. You snaked vines around their feet and pulled them to knock them off balance. The kid’s eyes shot to his allies on the ground; Xigbar knocked several arrows into him. Not that you could see him, of course, he was probably doing some gravity defying stunts. The friends finally clambered to their feet, one of them healing Sora. Without warning, the bigger friend (dog?) ran towards you, shield in front. He ran right into you, knocking the wind out of your lungs. As you tried to catch your breath, your body took over. Vines wound around the dog, lifting him up and away from you. Thorns began to sprout from your fingers, you felt bark build up on your skin as armor. Interesting. That had never happened before.

In a flash, the kid cut the vines that held up his friends. (Both of them? When did you get the duck?) However, in haste to help his friends, he got dangerously close to you. You lashed out a powerful combo, giving Xigbar plenty of time to fire a full round into the other two. Sora was panting and a murderous glint appeared in his eyes. Before you could ready another attack, he transformed before you, becoming a shadowy figure. One, two, four, eight keyblade swings dug into you. Pain exploded through your body. The duck was firing shot after shot of Blizzara at you. Your eyes were going dark, slowly cutting off your peripheral vision. A dull, heavy object crashed into your spine, and your vision went black.

~~~~~~~~~

Xigbar saw you go down in his peripheral. Great. Now he had to take care of the lunkheads by himself. Sora and his friends turned toward him, ready to fight 

“You think that’s going to discourage me? As if!” Xigbar began his panic cycle, switching between teleporting rapidly and firing a few rounds. Each time he teleported, he glanced at you, face knot in worry.

The kid was relentless. Every time Xigbar stopped to reload, he caught about six keyblade swings to the face. The four of them went around and around in the cycle until Xigbar was able to knock out the two goofballs. He summoned a corridor and scooped you up fireman style. Your form disappeared into the darkness as Xigbar said a final quip.

“Love to stay and chat, but I gotta run. Ciao!”

The two of you appeared in the Grey Area, Saix already turned toward you.

“Is she unconscious?” Saix’s face was blank, like usual, but there was  _ something _ off.

“Yeah. Sora beat her up pretty good.”

“Did you forget the mission? It was to train her, not send her into battle with the Organization’s adversary.” His tone was stern. Who cares? At least he got you back home and safe. Isn’t that more important than some mission?

“Hey! We  _ were _ doing the mission, but the boy wonder showed up and ruined everything. Where’s Vexen?” 

“On a mission, Xigbar.” He spat the words out. “Leave her here. He will return shortly.”

“I’m not going to leave her in the  _ Grey Area _ !” He shook his head. His mind was racing and he was fuming. Where should he take you? He for sure was not going to leave you with the demon-turned-nobody. “I’m taking her to my room.”

“Why should we trust you to keep her safe when you couldn’t even protect her on her first mission?” Saix’s dumb face finally frowned. He summoned a couple of Dusks to follow you. “Take them with. They will make sure you don’t harm her further.” He turned back to the moon.

“They’ll make sure you don’t harm her…” Xigbar’s voice was laced with mockery. He adjusted you on his shoulder and made a Corridor to his room. The Dusks followed you. When in his room, he saw how much  _ junk _ he had on his bed. He cleared it with his spare hand and gently set you down on the bed. The Dusks lingered in the doorway.

“Go on, get out.” He shoved them out into the hallway and turned back to you.


	2. The First Day Part II, Electric Boogaloo

“Evex? Evex, can you hear me?” Strong hands were shaking you awake. Wait a minute. When did you fall asleep? You slowly blinked your eyes open, blinded by the strong fluorescent light. Gradually, your eyes adjusted and Xigbar came into view. His eye lit up and a smile spread across his face.

“What-” Your voice was hoarse, you cleared your throat. “What happened?” You tried to sit up, but he held you down.

“Woah, sweetheart. Lay down. We’re waiting for Vexen to get back so he can help.” He patted your shoulder and continued. “How much do you remember?”

“Um… Sora was ripping into me.” You softly chuckled. “I always saw you guys get clobbered by him but I never knew a blunt object could hurt so much.”

“Heh. Yeah, that thing can hurt. Goofy slammed into you and you passed out. After that, all three of them turned on me. Let me tell you, that duck can  _ hurt _ . I was teleporting as fast as I could, but they kept catching up. About fifteen minutes passed before I could grab you and get us back here.” Xigbar looked fondly at you. “For someone who’s never fought a keyblade wielder before, you put up one heck of a fight.”

“How long have we been back at the castle?”

“A few hours. Vexen is on a mission right now, but he should be back soon.”

“Hmm.” Xigbar stood up and stretched, and you got a full look at the room you were in.

It looked like all the standard issue rooms at first, but then you saw the guns. Arrowguns were packed into corners, with plenty of ammo cluttered around the room. You froze. Why did he take you to  _ his _ room? You tried to hide your panic as much as possible, but Xigbar could see right through you.

“Hey, kid,” He said softly, quickly sitting back down by the bed. “Don’t worry about the room thing. I have no idea where yours is, so I brought you here. Saix knows about it, put some Dusks outside the door so nothing happens, okay? Here, look.” He opened the door and revealed two Dusks looming in the doorway. You relaxed, if only a little.

“As soon as Vexen gets back, you’re not keeping me here, right?”

“Hah! As if. Believe me, sweetheart, while I enjoy your company, someone in my room isn't something I particularly love.” A Corridor wooshed in the hallway, and Vexen stepped out.

“Xigbar, I hope this is of genuine importance and not some incredulous prank you are trying to pull.” Vexen sneered at Xigbar and walked into the room. “Oh, the newest got caught in a little scuffle? Let me see.” He sat down by the bed and took a look at you. “What hurts?”

“Everything. My back especially.”

“Can you sit up?” You tried to sit up, but your body screamed in pain and you flopped back onto the mattress. “I see. Xigbar, please take her to my room. I must gather some necessary supplies from storage.” He opened a Corridor and sauntered out, leaving you with Xigbar.

“Don’t look so miserable, kiddo. We’re getting you help.” He approached the bed and scooped you up with ease. How strong is he? As soon as you were in his arms, you realized how cold you were. He was warm against you, but your body was telling you to flee. Nobody had ever picked you up and  _ carried _ you before; it activated your fight or flight response. You expected him to open up a corridor, but he continued walking, Dusks not far behind.

"Uh, Xigbar? Where are we going?"

"Believe it or not, I've never actually been to Vexen's room. I'm guessing you have, since you used to clean the place.” He stopped. “Where are we?”

“Um…” You took a look around, but the hallways in the castle looked the same. You only knew the way to his room by muscle memory. “Maybe a left? No. Well? No. Go to the training room, I’ll know the way from there.”

Xigbar sighed and headed in the opposite direction. His footsteps were rocking you gently, and your eyes were heavy. The next thing you knew, he was shaking you awake.

“Sweetheart, I know you’re tired, but you gotta tell me where to go from here.” 

Slowly but surely, you led him through the winding halls and arrived at Vexen’s door. Vexen was already inside, looking quite annoyed.

“It would have been more efficient for you to use a corridor, Xigbar.”

“Yeah, well. Not like I’ve ever been here before.”

“You have been here. Just never conscious. Come, give me the child.” 

Vexen held out his arms and Xigbar gave you over. Vexen was colder than Xigbar, but your body hurt too much to care. Two Dusks slunk into the room and shut the Freeshooter out. He dropped you onto the spare cot in his room and started rummaging through his closet. He held a Potion up to your lips.

“Drink.” You obeyed and felt only a little bit better. “I need you to remove your coat. I assume you are wearing underclothes?”

“Yeah. I am.” You took off your coat and lay on the bed in a tee shirt and your shorts, balancing on the brink of sleep.

“You have a broken rib, so I will administer some anaesthetic to numb the area. It will make you tired. Sleep is necessary for recovery.” You felt a pinch in your side, and Vexen began counting down. “Ten, nine, eight, seven, six...”

~~~~~~~~~

Xigbar rapped quietly on the door.

“Come in.” Vexen’s voice was cold, as per usual. Xigbar opened the door and saw your sleeping body on Vexen’s cot.

“Is she okay?”

“Evex has a fractured rib and a concussion. She might sleep for a while. I’m not exactly sure if she’ll wake. You’re free to take her back to her room.” He said with a dismissive wave of his hand. 

“Oh,” Xigbar picked you up. “Where exactly is her room?”

Vexen sighed and summoned a Dusk. “They will show you. Leave so I can finish my work.” He waved him out.

The Dusk slunk out of the doorway, showing Xigbar the way to your room. When he arrived, Xigbar shooed the Dusk away. He gently set you back on the bed.

“Feeling like I got déjà vu in this place…” He muttered sadly to himself and glanced around your room. You had several plant pots decorating the walls and floor, some of them with orange lights. Each one had specific watering instructions taped to the pots. Xigbar sat down in the chair and stared longingly at your sleeping form.

“Kid, please wake up soon.”

And that was how you were watched. Xigbar most of the time, and whenever he had a mission, he appointed a Sniper Nobody to guard your door. You were asleep for six weeks. During that time, Xigbar was drowning in guilt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have more written on this, but I'm not entirely done doing a proofread. More when I have time!


	3. The First Mission: Redo

Once again, you awoke with bright, fluorescent lights shining in your eyes. You turned your head to survey the room. You realized with pleasant surprise that the room was yours. In addition to your potted plants and warming lights, a figure sat in a chair in the corner, asleep. You propped yourself up on an elbow to see who it was. Your wounds were mostly healed by now, light scabs on some scratches and less body pain. How long were you asleep? You shook your head and reached for your coat by your bed and pulled it on. It seemed, however, the jingling of the drawstrings woke the figure.

“You been out for a while, kid. Some of us have taken to looking after you.” Xigbar’s golden eye glinted as he stood. “Saix is waiting for you, tiger.” He walked out of your room, though it was interesting he chose to walk instead of summoning a corridor or teleporting like he usually did.

You walked out to the Grey Area, not at all surprised to see Saix staring at the moon and Axel with Roxas on the couch. You cleared your throat to catch Saix’s attention.

“Evex. Good to see you out of your room. I trust your wounds have been sufficiently healed. Here is your mission for today. We expect this to take a little over two hours. We don’t want a repeat of your first mission.” He handed you a sheet off a clipboard and turned back to the window.

Mission Type: Maintenance 

Assigned Members:Evex

World: Twilight Town

Restrictions: None

Objective: Clear Heartless from Tram Common.

Mission Lender: Saix

You summoned a Corridor and walked through it to Tram Common, a rather lifeless place at night. In the distance, under the archway, two Shadows materialized. This was going to be easy.

From afar you lashed out a few vines and quickly eliminated them. A couple of soldiers then appeared, and you made quick work of them, too. This is what being a member is about? Dull missions around Twilight Town? You weren’t so sure you wanted to be a member. You took an hour and patrolled the area, making sure nothing else showed up. When you saw no threats, you summoned a Corridor to go back.

“Back already?” Saix stared through you with a blank expression. “How was your mission?”

“Simple. Only a few Heartless. Stuck around afterwards to make sure everything was good.”

“Hmm. You are done for the day. Come back tomorrow morning for a new assignment.” Saix once again turned back to the moon, stoic as ever. You turned to go to the training room to practice.

You walked down the hallway, peeling off your gloves and shoving them in your pocket. You felt a hand settle on your shoulder. Vines lashed out as you whipped around. Strangely, all you found was empty air. Instead of letting your plants disappear, you held them tightly and continued on your way to the training area. Not five steps later, you felt it again.

“Who’s there?” You spoke into the empty hallway, surveying the area cautiously. Nobody replied. “I know someone’s there. Reveal yourself!” The strange feeling that happened during your first mission happened again. Bark climbed up your neck, thorns sprouted from your hands. Ivy snaked its way up your feet and built a strong network underneath you, lifting you a few feet off the ground. The air in front of you seemed to shimmer and Xigbar stepped out of one of his portals. Immediately, your defense mechanism retracted as you glared at the man. Oh great, now he’s  _ clapping _ ! That kind of sarcastic, golf clap. The most annoying kind.

“Great job, tiger.  _ Some _ body in the castle didn’t seem to think you could do it again, but guess I’m right again, huh?” His smile faded and he turned defensive. “What? You should be thanking me right now, you know. Not like you could’ve replicated that yourself…”

“You scared me.” Your fierce glare didn’t wither.

“Uh, yeah. That was the point.” Xigbar gave you a cheesy grin. “Aren’t you going to the training room?”

“I was. Now I might just go to my room.” You turned and began walking in the opposite direction. Xigbar began walking with you.

“Come on, Evex. Don’t you want to hone your skills?”

“Not if you’re going to be there.”

“Hey, don’t be like that! Oh, what if we made a bet?” He said as if he had just came up with that idea, even though you knew Xigbar plans everything out. Your ears pricked up at the idea, but you kept walking.

“What kind of bet? One that only you could win?”

“No, no. Nothing like that. A bet to see who would win in a fight.” Yeah, nice. As if Xigbar  _ wouldn’t  _ win that one.

“And? What’s the prize?”

“Loser has to… hmm…” He stopped walking. “Pick up the next mission!” He caught up to you and stopped you. “What do you say?”

“Only if Luxord is the referee.” You smirked and held out a hand. He shook it.

“It’s a deal then. See you in the training room.” He backed up into a portal and scrunched his nose as he left. Your eyes lingered on the spot where he disappeared. 


	4. Fight!

You kept your head down as you walked to the training room. The doors were open, it sounded like. Two voices leaked into the hall.

“Are you sure about this? You don’t know the extent of her abilities. This could end in a trip to Vexen’s room.”

“As if. Listen, I have a plan. It’s going to be all good.”

“Just making sure you know what you’re getting yourself into.”

At this point you decided to walk into the training room because you had heard enough. Luxord was loitering by the dummies and Xigbar was standing with both arrowguns in hand. Both of them whipped their heads toward you when you entered.

“Took you long enough, sweetheart. Almost thought you wouldn’t show up.” He took his arrowguns and inserted the barrel end of one into the ammo slot of the other. A bright light flashed and the two became one rifle. A  _ sniper _ rifle. You gulped, you’d never had to use your abilities at a larger distance than a few feet. Then again, you hadn’t fought a keyblade wielder before.

“Allow me to explain the rules.” Luxord stepped in between the two of you, holding up a hand. “Number one. Restrict your abilities only if severe, life threatening injury is imminent to the other. I will be standing by ready to intervene if necessary. Number two- all attacks are allowed except for those that impair the mental capacity of another fighter. This includes the spells Sleep and Confuse. This fight will end when either of you tap out. The fight will begin in thirty seconds. Prepare yourselves.” Luxord stepped back.

You didn’t dare look at Xigbar and take away from the little time you had. You wound vines around your feet and lift yourself into the air. Summoning all your mental energy, you tried to recreate the armor on your skin. The room felt hot and stuffy; you cast off your overcoat. Bark began to grow now, covering all of your exposed skin. Thorns grew in abundance across your entire upper body. More vines coiled around your wrists, connecting you to the ecosystem below, with its thick, strong branches. You glanced at Xigbar, who was carefully eyeing you from his perch on the ceiling. Luxord caught your attention when he called from below you.

Five. Xigbar unzipped his coat and threw it down. You narrowed your eyes skeptically.

Four. He shrugged at you. An evil grin spread across his face. The bark on your skin got a little thicker.

Three. Xigbar held his rifle pointed straight at you. His face wasn’t focused, rather, it frowned and his eye closed as if he was formulating a plan.

Two. You finally looked down at yourself. In only a nightshirt, pants, and boots, you felt like Xigbar was just a little more equipped.

One. The high pitched whine of the Sharpshooter charging pierced the air. 

Go. Six bullets rained down from above. Vines created a shield around you and blocked them.

“You little sneak!” Xigbar cried as he reloaded the rifle. You carried yourself swiftly toward him on your vines, throwing him an uppercut. It connected harshly with his jaw and lip, cutting it. Xigbar froze, put a hand to his lips and drew it back, seeing blood. His eye bore into you as he smirked and disappeared. You whipped your head around, seeing him down on the floor aiming at you. Too late. A bullet buried itself into your back. You lost your balance, toppling backward, only held by your ankles. As you fell, you saw Xigbar break apart his rifle back into the arrowguns.

Apparently your vines like to have a mind of their own. Your balance was back and a flurry of vines rushed the Freeshooter, forcing him to teleport. You caught sight of him in the opposite corner, on the floor. The top priority was the gun pointed at you; nothing else mattered if there was a bullet in your head. You weaved your way through the barrage and crept toward him. 

Hold on. Why were you so shaky all of the sudden? You looked down and saw Xigbar had been firing into your foundation, cutting off the very thing that kept you afloat. He caught your eye and raised his eyebrows.

“Ever the master of misdirection, huh, Xigbar?” You let your vines retreat and you jumped onto the floor, standing on equal ground with him.

“What, you think I’m gonna fight fair?” A sharp laugh, more like a bark, broke through him. “As if!” He started running around on the floor, raising himself into the air with each step. When he got to a height that was just out of your reach, he started firing again. 

You gripped one vine like a whip and created a makeshift shield out of others. You lashed out from behind the shield, miraculously grabbing his wrist. You pulled straight down on it, making him waste shots into the ground. The vine coiled around his arm, slowly making its way up his limb and around his neck. Meanwhile, your shield had taken a beating and you discarded it to your side, taking the incoming shots with your forearm. Bullets buried themselves into your arm, barely grazing the skin. Keeping your arm raised, you saw Xigbar reload and prepare to teleport. You kept a firm grip on the vine around his neck. 

The air to your left shimmered and Xigbar attempted to step through, but your grip on the leash around his neck kept him from moving. You coiled thorny branches around your arm and punched through the portal, only slightly amused at the picture of Xigbar caught between your fist and a vine around his neck. Suddenly, he reached up with one arrowgun and sliced the vine holding him hostage. He dropped down from the air and you braced yourself, ready to defend. His eye found yours, and he smiled. A genuine, rational, happy _ ,  _ distinctly _ not evil _ , smile. He vanished into thin air. 

You scanned the room but found no trace of him. Branches formed another, sturdier barrier sphere around you. Abruptly, bullets rained down from the ceiling and destroyed your barrier within seconds. The remaining bullets on the ground glowed dangerously. Portals opened up in front of you and you had no choice but to run. Bullets of light sliced into your protective bark, making it fall away and leaving your skin exposed. As you ran, more shards of light fell onto the ground and formed a terrifying mine field. Your mind and body were wearing thin and you tried your hardest to avoid them. However, your focus on trying to replenish your bark left your body open to mistakes. Your foot landed directly on a bullet and exploded, launching you high into the air. In freefall, you tried to summon something,  _ anything _ , to catch you. Nothing appeared and you landed harshly on… the ceiling? You looked up and saw the training room floor above you. Xigbar was right in front of you, grinning.

“You ready to tap out? Or are you going to try to win an uphill battle?” You could hear the condescending tone in his voice. With all your strength, you summoned a vine and wrapped it around his ankles, tying them together. He fell and you leaped on him, fueled only by the desire to win, throwing several punches. He gasped for air and pushed you off him. Another vine snaked up around him, grabbing his Arrowguns and tossing them to the side. Xigbar made a guttural noise- was that a  _ growl? _ \- and released his hold on gravity. You plummeted nearly ten feet down to the ground, your strength long gone by now. You looked down and saw the bullets-turned-mines staring at you. Your eyes closed and you slammed into someone.

“You don’t talk a lot while you fight, do you?” You opened your eyes and saw Xigbar’s feet. Looking up, you saw that he had pressed the reset switch, turning the arena back into the blank canvas. You let your head fall back down onto the ground, groaning in response.

“Guess that means I win, right, Luxord?”

“That would be correct. Both of you are injured, though. Come get a Potion.” You propped yourself up on your knee and stood up after catching your breath. Xigbar tossed you a bottle; you downed it in a second.

“Good fight.” You were panting and sweaty and gross. All you wanted was to grab your coat and take a shower. Xigbar gave you a fist bump.

“Once again, you impressed me. Maybe one day you could actually beat me. Ha! As if.” He took your empty bottle and gave them back to Luxord, who was playing with his cards, as usual. You grabbed both of the coats off the ground, handing Xigbar his. The two of you began walking down the hallway.

“You know, I’ve never fought somebody that took off their coat.”

“Yeah? So why did you take off yours?”

“Dunno. Felt like it was something I should do. Make things fair.”

“I thought you didn’t fight fair?”

“I don’t. Most of the time.” It looked like he tried to wink at you, but it just looked odd since he only had one eye. He chuckled when he saw your eyebrows furrow. “This is my stop. Have fun explaining to Saix why you’re picking up my mission.” He opened his door and slammed it shut. You heard him laugh to himself through the door. Smiling, you headed to the showers.

~~~~~~~~~

Xigbar closed his door and chuckled to himself. Never in all his years as a member has he actually had a  _ friend. _ Sure, Axel was cool to talk to, but now he had the Roxas kid. Luxord was alright, but he talked with too many words, he couldn’t keep up. Even though he had only known you (consciously) for a mission and a single, really good, fight, he felt like the two of you could be good friends.


	5. Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo hoo! 6k words in the bag!

Just as you got dressed, Larxene ran into your room. You yelped in surprise and jumped.

“Orders from the big man. Be in the meeting room in two.” She tossed you a peace sign and left. You sighed and pulled on your coat. Larxene wasn’t your favorite member. She talked a lot and was more than rude. If you had to describe her, you’d probably use the word  _ sadistic _ . When you started work for the Castle, you were glad to see another female Nobody. However, all good feelings vanished when you saw that she was worse than Xigbar. You summoned a corridor to the Round Room. 

As you walked in, you realized this was a “hood up” kind of meeting. Pulling yours on, you sat in your seat, feeling just a little embarrassed that everyone else got there before you. Xemnas began talking.

“As some of you may know, our way of life is being threatened. The keyblade wielder and his allies are making plans to storm The World That Never Was. We have a few fail safes in place, but we must ensure that he does not discover our location. Saix and Zexion, take care of cloaking our world from radars. All else, prepare to fight at any moment. We do not know if their allies already know where we reside. Until further notice, all the missions you will be sent on will be within a certain radius. All members are asked to return to the castle the moment their mission is complete. Do not dawdle. That is all.” The leader was the first to sink into a corridor and you could have sworn you heard someone sigh. You went to your room to take a nap until morning.

As you lay in your bed, you couldn’t help but think about the meeting. Although you didn’t think Sora could find the Castle, your mind wandered. What if they  _ did _ find you? Would you be able to outlast Sora and his friends the second time around? No doubt he would be stronger than when you met him in Wonderland. He would be prepared. He’d have more allies.

A vision of Sora destroying the Castle flashed through your mind. You and Xigbar were trying to outlast the relentless attacks from his friends, but they were too strong. They were lashing out attack after attack, each one hurting more than the last. You saw Xigbar fall and vanish into darkness. You winced and rolled over. Sleep didn’t come that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter was a little slow and short, but it'll pick back up soon enough! I have plenty more planned for this story...


	6. The Mission Where You Don't Get Hurt, Part 1

The next morning, you headed out to the Grey Area, tired as ever. Saix stared you down from across the room.

“Got a mission for me?” You said as you strolled toward him.

“One. This requires a few members. You, Xigbar, and Zexion are to speak to the residents of Twilight Town and see if Sora or his allies have recently stopped by. Xigbar has your mission statement.” Xigbar got off the couch and gave you a piece of paper.

“Guess that bet will have to wait, huh?”

Mission Type: Recon

Assigned Members: Xigbar, Zexion, Evex

World: Twilight Town

Restrictions: Do not show your true form to the residents.

Objective: Find Sora’s whereabouts. Use Zexion to disguise true forms.

Mission Lender: Saix

“Where exactly is Zexion?” You said as you pocketed the mission statement. 

“Probably in the library. I’ll go find him.” XIgbar walked into a corridor and a moment later walked out with Zexion.

“That was unnecessary. I was studying the forms of Twilight Town residents.” Zexion’s quiet voice seemed more than a little peeved. Xigbar obviously didn’t care.

“Yeah, and now we have a mission. Come on,” he shoved him into a corridor. He called back at you. “You coming?”

You walked through the corridor Xigbar made and weren’t at all surprised when you walked out on the top of a building. You sighed and gave Zexion the paper.

“Hm. I see. We need to blend in. That will take quite a bit of my mental focus, so you two need to guard me at all times.” Zexion peered at you through his hair. “Though I’m not so sure that you two were the best choice,” he muttered.

“Oh, be quiet. Not like we wanted to go on this one. Hurry up and disguise us so we can get this over with.” Xigbar’s impatient nature was surely going to make this mission  _ fun _ . 

“If you rush me, the work won’t get done correctly and we will need to start over. Now both of you, remove your coats.” He took off his and held a hand out expectantly.

“What?! If we don’t have our coats, the corridors will destroy us!” Xigbar defensively crossed his arms.

“Yes, and if you  _ have _ your coats, the illusion cannot be created. So, give me the coats. And gloves.” You already had yours off and in his hand before Xigbar caved and took his off.

“Can’t believe this... “ Xigbar sure had a habit of muttering to himself.

Zexion took off his garb and placed it on the ground next to him along with yours and Xigbar’s. You thought all three of you looked a bit silly, standing on top of a building in basic t shirts and Organization-regulated pants. Zexion took a deep breath and closed his eyes. You looked at him curiously and saw him change into a schoolboy right before your eyes, complete with uniform and tied-back hair. You glanced down and saw that you were wearing a schoolgirl’s outfit. Xigbar caught your attention when he groaned beside you.

“Are you serious? What am I wearing, Vexen’s old wardrobe? Come  _ on _ .” Xigbar’s outfit really wasn’t as bad as he was making it seem. Compared to your outfit, it seemed like he was more comfortable with a dress shirt and some nice khakis, both in a neutral beige color. If you were being honest, the business casual look suited him. The only weird thing about it was seeing both of his eyes. They weren’t yellow anymore, just brown. You weren’t sure you liked that.

“We need to blend in, Xigbar. Now. You two go to the shopping district. I’ll hide the coats and see what I can find in the subway. Meet back here when the clock strikes eight.” He turned, picked up the coats, and left. Xigbar sighed and held out a hand.

“Come on. Let’s hurry up so we can go get some ice cream.” He smacked your shoulder and teleported down to the ground, giving you a portal not long after.

“What’s ice cream?” You said as you appeared on the ground next to him.

“Are you serious? You’ve never…” His voice trailed off as he saw the blank look on your face. “Well, let’s get this done first, and  _ then _ you can experience the wonder of Twilight Town sea-salt ice cream. Come on.” He shoved you forward again. He sure did have a habit of doing that. The two of you walked into Tram Common, stopping at the first shop you saw, an accessory shop.

“Good morning! What can I help you with today?” The man at the counter was very proper. As Xigbar would call him, a stiff.

“We’re uh, looking for someone. A kid. About this tall, brown, spiky hair? Seen him around?” He gestured to your head to estimate Sora’s height. That wasn’t right. You were surely taller than the kid, right?

“No, sorry. What was his name?” The shopkeep began rummaging through a few receipts, probably engraving records.

“Sora.” You spoke up, trying to look at what he was going through.

“Oh! Yes, he came in here earlier. Requested a charm engraved. He, uh, mentioned that he had to run some other errands, but he would be back later today.” The shopkeeper smiled and Xigbar nodded.

“Thanks for the help, sir.” You both walked out and ducked into an alleyway.

“Well, looks like we have ourselves a lead. I don’t see the point in going and interviewing the other residents, do you?” He gave you a questioning look.

“Nah.” You glanced at the clock tower. Six fifteen. You had lots of time. “Let’s go get some iced cream.”

“It’s  _ ice _ cream, kid. It’s down this way.” Xigbar led you down a quiet, sleepy street and stopped at a brightly colored food cart. He pulled out some munny and ordered two of the ice cream things, then gave one to you. It was slightly blue, and it didn’t look like food that you’d normally find around the Castle. Xigbar teleported himself and then you to the top of a building, where you both sat. “Go on, eat. It’s not going to hurt you.”

You took a bite. It was pretty good. Salty, but not enough to overpower the sweetness. The texture was smooth and honestly, you hadn’t tasted anything so  _ good _ in your life. When you looked up at Xigbar, he was trying to contain a laugh.

“I’ll be honest, I wasn’t expecting you to eat the whole thing. I know they’re good, but next time you gotta make it last.” Next time. You smiled and looked down at the town below. People walked by the shops, stopping occasionally. You kept the accessory shop within your peripheral. Nobody walked in or out. In that moment, you were at peace. Sitting on a building with a true friend next to you.

A few hours passed, and the clock struck eight. Xigbar stood and cracked his knuckles, glancing at you.

“I’ll go back and talk to Zexion. You keep an eye on the shop. We’ll be back in a few.” Xigbar teleported away, leaving you to watch the shop. A few minutes later, Zexion appeared with Xigbar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew! This one took a while. Doing this made me realize how much people really don't write about Xigbar. Hopefully the next entry in the series sparks some creativity.


	7. The Mission Where You Don't Get Hurt: Part 2

“I was led to believe the same thing. Good work, you two. Now we wait.” Zexion sat down on the edge next to you. Xigbar summoned his arrowguns and began spinning them to idle himself.

Movement down below caught your eye. The kid was walking into the shop. You shared a glance at Xigbar and the three of you appeared down at the shop.

“Thank you so much for shopping here. We hope to have your business again soon!”   
The kid walked out with a plastic bag and turned sharply, accidentally bumping into Zexion. 

“Woah, sorry!” The illusion flickered and Sora’s face frowned. “Wait a minute. Have I met you guys before?” He eyed all three of you skeptically. Xigbar stepped in.

“Sorry. You must have the wrong people.” You instinctively tried to leave, but the kid stopped you.

“No. I know your voice. I’ve heard it before.” You held a hand behind your back, feeling a vine slither into your hand. “I know! You’re the girl from Wonderland! I knew it!” Sora summoned his keyblade and prepared to fight.

“Xigbar. Let’s go.” Zexion slowly backed away. All three of your facades flickered and disappeared. Xigbar dropped himself into a portal, then Zexion. You looked up toward the top of the building and saw Xigbar, pointing toward the alleyway. A trap. And you’re the bait. A smirk spread on your face as your vines grabbed hold of your feet and steadied you with an extra ivy vine on the waist. Sora leapt toward you.

You easily dodged and began snaking your way back to the alley. Sora followed you, trying to get a hit in but missing every time. This was too simple. When you got to the end of the alley you shot yourself into the air, landing on the top of the building. You sealed off the other end temporarily with thorny branches and vines. Xigbar appeared next to you.

“Nicely done. Let’s get out of here.” Xigbar created a portal, but he was interrupted when the building shook. Both of you looked down and saw the ground beneath the building cracking. The earth was splitting apart and busting the foundations. Zexion was on the ground, ushering residents out of the shopping district.   
It shook again, this time the building was collapsing, crushing the alleyway. Sora cried out from beneath it and a pang of empathy raced through you. The sky was turning dark and you could barely see the Freeshooter next to you.

“Xigbar! Save Sora!”

“What? Why?”

“He’ll die!”

“That’s kind of the idea, isn’t it?”

“We’ll need him to fight whatever’s coming up out of the ground. Get him up here!”

Xigbar groaned and you heard the thump of Sora’s body on the top of the building. Eerie light emanating from the crack cast a green glow on him. He shook his head and stood.

“What- Hey!” Sora summoned his keyblade, but was distracted by the light on the ground. He looked up at you. “Did you… save me?” 

“Consider it a necessary evil.” Xigbar pointed down at the crack that was slowly opening. “Any idea what that thing is?”

“No I-” The building started tilting over, turning the horizontal into vertical. Xigbar waved a hand and now you were standing on the collapsing building, feet firmly rooted to the roof. Sora was scrambling for purchase. You glared at Xigbar.

“What?” Xigbar snapped and Sora was affected by the artificial gravity. The ground shook again and this time, the creature awakened.

It was a beast, with large hulking arms, nearly the size of the buildings around it. The eyes were nothing but pinpricks of green light. Its body looked like a human, but with supernatural muscles. The same ethereal light glowed under the skin near its heart. Xigbar summoned his arrowguns. You shot a quick look at Sora, who was very disoriented and looked like he was going to throw up.

“Look, kid, we may not be allies, but you gotta help us fight that thing.” Xigbar had to shout to be heard.

“Why would I help you? For all I know, this is a trap!” Sora toppled over and kneeled.

“Sora! Down here!” You looked down at the ground and saw the dog and the duck waving at him. Sora gave you a fierce look.

“This isn’t to help you. It’s to save Twilight Town!” He jumped down to his friends, landing only a little bit awkwardly. The beast growled and began tearing apart the brick road, hurling debris in your direction.

A sharp pipe came toward your face and you barely blocked it with a flurry of branches. There was no time to recover. Next to you, Xigbar focused all his energy on firing on the beast. You grunted and shot out two massive pillars of pure plant. They struck the beast’s eyes and occupied him enough for Sora to seriously injure it.

The creature turned furious as nearly thirty bullets implanted themselves in its skin. It grabbed your vines and yanked, dragging you along with it. 

“Evex!” Xigbar cried from behind as you began hurtling toward the giant. Its colossal fists caught a hold of you and held you close to its face. The powerful fists were slowly squeezing the life out of you. You didn’t have long. Your head was spinning and your lungs screaming for oxygen. Pure, animalistic fear raced through your veins, overwhelming your senses. Part of you wished for death just to stop the panic.

Is this how you die? At the face of a gigantic beast? Oh, how stupid you were! To give a creature with so much more power than you a direct line.

All of the sudden you were falling, down, down, down in an endless abyss. You saw flashes of your old life, from so many years ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a theory floating around that Demyx is the Master of Masters, and it makes me mad that there is a lot of evidence for it. Anyway, the next chapter is going to be a little heavy. I'm going to update the tags, so please be wary.


	8. Somebody

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: IMPLIED/REFERENCED SUICIDE!  
> The tags have been updated as such. It isn't graphic, but if this kind of content is triggering to you, you can skip to the break. In the future, all triggering topics will be warned like this. Stay safe!

Your mother is crying. Why? You’re crying too.

Someone’s in front of you. You can’t see their face. They shine a bright, warm light on you. They give you a small box.

Your house again. There’s a ring on your finger, a plain gold band. Your mother won’t look at you, but she mutters something under her breath. You can’t hear what she’s saying, but it hurts. It hurts, so,  _ so _ much. You can’t identify the emotion.

The person is in front of you again. They’re bleeding. A voice is in your ear, asking what happened. Flashing lights, a vehicle. You’re both in it. You hear only one thing through the chaos. The person takes a shuddered breath and their light fades.

A cliff. There’s a beautiful sunset. A rainbow in a misty sky. You look at the ring and identify the feeling. Betrayal. In the sky, you feel their light. Your foot leaves the rocky terrace. 

~~~

You landed on cement and the world came back to you. It was loud and your lungs ached.

“Evex!” Xigbar was in the air, shooting while talking. Above you was the beast, fists prepared to come down on you again. “Run!”

Adrenaline grabbed hold of your muscles, even if your mind wasn’t completely aware. You dodged the fist that crashed into the ground behind you. The giant growled and the ground beneath you lifted, throwing off your balance. Your eyes shot to Xigbar, who was currently very occupied with the creature’s arms, trying to get him to set you down. 

“Make a corridor, kid!” The beast swatted him away like a pesky fly.

“I don’t have a coat!” The pinpricks of light were full of rage.

“Do you want to die? This thing is going to do it again!” He charged a powerful shot and fired it right into the muscle tissue. The ground beneath you gave way, and you tumbled into the chasm the creature crawled from. Seeing no escape, you braced yourself and fell into a corridor.

Your skin burned without the protection of the coat. Darkness seeped into your eyes and mouth and singed your insides. You could see the Grey Area only a few steps away. You tried to lash out a vine to grab something to pull yourself out with, but it withered the moment it appeared. Each step liquified your bones. You collapsed face down on the glass floor of the Grey Area.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hopeful that it wasn't too intense; I'd like this fic to keep its Teen rating.


	9. Lay Off

All Xigbar saw was your small figure on the chunk of road. Your eyes were big, fearful, locked on the beast. Xigbar took his eye off of you to fire into the giant. He blinked, hard, as it let go of the road and you fell off. Time stopped. He couldn't focus on anything else but your tiny body in freefall. You were so small, helpless. His breathing staunched.

Xigbar watched as you tumbled out of his eyesight. Wisps of black smoke curled around the beast. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off of the spot you disappeared until a voice yelled from below him.

“Xigbar!” Zexion was below, sending out copies of himself to attack the beast. “Never mind her- Focus!”

He was right. The mission came first. Xigbar gasped- when did he start holding his breath?- and converted his weapon into a rifle. An extraordinarily powerful bullet found its target right in the giant’s temple. Its hand came up to cover its wound, but it left its core exposed.

“Sora! Get the chest!” Xigbar shouted, charging another shot. Sora obeyed and unleashed a powerful combo on the creature’s glowing core. It exploded into a cloud of smoke, revealing a heart floating up to the sky. The sky lightened and Xigbar got a good look at the area. In the middle of Tram Common, a gigantic ravine split the ground. Xigbar teleported down to Zexion and the kid, coats and gloves in hand.

“So much for not being seen…” Zexion muttered under his breath. Xigbar smacked him on the shoulder. Sora gave the two an angry look.

“Did you kill that girl?”

“As if!” He barked out a sharp laugh. “Why don’t you run along, kid? I’m sure some other world needs your help. Come on, Zexion.” They turned away.

“You did kill her! She disappeared into a cloud of smoke while you just watched!” Xigbar froze, narrowed his eyebrows, and turned on his heels.

“Xigbar.” Zexion warned. He waved him away and stepped toward Sora, crouching down to his level.

“Listen,  _ kid _ . You might want to stop poking your nose in affairs that don’t involve you, comprende?” The kid nodded, looking pretty scared; Xigbar stood, satisfied. “Good. Let’s go.” Zexion created a corridor and stepped through. Xigbar hesitated, almost scared to see what awaited him on the other side. He walked through and was greeted by a very,  _ very _ angry Saix.

“Xigbar. What is the meaning of this?” He pointed toward a form on the couch, fully covered in a blanket. Was that your body? “Zexion, go to your room. Xigbar and I need to talk.” The younger turned and left, and Xigbar answered.

“Why are you only blaming me for this? Zexion was there too.”

“Zexion did not harm our newest member on each mission she went on. Now tell me why Evex came back, through a corridor, without a coat!”

“She was about to die to a Heartless. Lay off.”

“I will not ‘lay off.’ Why were you attacking a Heartless that could kill? The mission was to find Sora, not engage in some epic battle.”

“We didn’t mean to attack it. It attacked us! And, FYI, we did find Sora.”

“How did you explain to Sora attacking a Heartless, then? How do you explain the massive rift in the middle of Twilight Town? The mission statement clearly stated-”

“Covert operation, yes, I know. Listen, the situation was tricky. The only way out was to fight. I had to save the kid!”

“Why, Xigbar, it almost seems like you care for her.”

“Are you kidding me? I’m a Nobody, she’s a Nobody. It’s called ‘looking out for each other.’”

“The more time you two spend together, the more I doubt what you say.”

“Saix, why don’t you just say what you mean instead of taking the coward’s way out?”

“Fine. I have reason to believe that Evex is not a Nobody.”

“How so?”

“The girl is secretive about her past life, so much so that it is suspicious.”

“Oh, my bad, allow me to pry into the kid’s past trauma so we can be sure she isn’t a spy. Are you going to do that to Demyx too? You’re nuts.” Xigbar turned to leave, his eye lingering on your unconscious form. He shook his head and walked away.


	10. Scars

Vexen walked into his room and immediately groaned when he saw your body on his spare cot. He couldn’t see your injuries because you had a blanket, so he lifted it gently to get a look.

“Let’s see what the cat dragged-” 

Vexen recoiled instinctively and stood staring at your form, dumbstruck. He had never seen such a burn before. Your skin was raw and peeling, and your muscles were exposed. Frantically, the academic searched his cabinets for a preliminary Potion. He was just about to grasp one on the top shelf when he tripped on his coat and fell directly into the cabinets, causing them to crash down from the wall. Clearly the noise made by this prompted a visit by the one and only Saix.

“Is everything going well?” Saix’s head appeared in the doorway, smug smile contrasting his dead eyes.

“Hm! Going as well as it could, given the circumstances. What even happened to her? Did she get caught in a burning building?” Vexen sheepishly stood from the pile of broken cabinet and dusted himself off.

“No. She went through a corridor unprotected.” Saix stepped into the room, idly moving the blanket back up to your shoulders. “How long?”

“How long until what?” Vexen involuntarily scoffed at him.

“Until she is rehabilitated, Vexen.”

“Not like I’ve seen such an injury before. I suspect a week for the pain to be lessened enough for her to be walking.”

“Then you need only a week. I expect both of you to be mission ready in seven days.” Saix turned and left, leaving Vexen quite perplexed. He sighed and turned back toward the rubble.

“One week. Hm. He lets that power get to his head.” He picked up a Hi-Potion and some sterilized packages. “Let’s get started, then.”

* * *

Apparently you have a habit of passing out and waking up under fluorescent lights. A black coat was standing next to the bed. The memories of what happened flooded back and made you dizzy. You saw wires coming out of your arm and tried to grab them, but a hand stopped you.

“Stop. Do you want to get better, or will you just continue being a delinquent?” Vexen came into view beside you with that ever present angry frown. You let your hand fall to your side. “Hmpf. That’s what I thought. You’ve been asleep for a few days. How do you feel?”

“I-” You tried to speak, but there was a bandage around your chin and your throat hurt.

“I see. You heal remarkably quick, Evex. Most of your skin healed without scars, except for a few deep cuts on your chin. They will scar in due time. You will stay on IV fluids for the next eight hours and then return to your missions. Can you stand?” You sat up and felt his hand on your elbow. The touch was cold and calculated, as usual. You leaned on him and tried to stand, your legs weak. Your knees buckled and you fell on the man. Eventually, your muscles got used to the pressure and you let go of Vexen. He gave you a stand for your IV bag. “You may return to your room, but I will send for you when it is time to remove it.”

You used the stand as a sort of crutch as you hobbled your way back to your room. Just as you reached the door, though, a hand pulled you around the corner. You felt a hand press to your mouth to keep you quiet. Your eyes shot open and all you saw was an eyepatch. Oh,  _ great. _ Xigbar’s eye was scanning the hallway.

“Shh! Do you want to get caught?”

You muffled a reply against his hand.

“Listen. I’m glad to see you up and out again, but there is some really shady stuff that has gone down while you were asleep.” You pulled his hand off your face.

“Can’t we do this conversation in my room? You nearly tore my IV out.”

“Oh, right. Sorry.” He pulled you into your room and shut the door. You sat down on your bed, already tired.

“What was it you wanted to say?”

“Saix told me the night you came back that he didn’t think you were a Nobody.”  
“What? That’s ridiculous! Of course I’m a Nobody!”

“That’s what I said. Word is- Xemnas is gearing up for something big. Needs everyone to be on the Organization’s side. So he’s sent his little pawn out sneaking. Suspecting Axel and Roxas too.”

“What happens if they think we’re not on the Organization’s side?”

“Who knows? Most likely solution is to turn you into a Dusk, but even then…”

“Do they suspect you?”

“Hard to tell.” Xigbar took a seat in the corner of your room. You took a long breath in.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you something. Where did you get that scar?”

“Huh. You know, everyone always asks about the eye first. Some punk kid did it a long time ago, when I was somebody. Took my eye too. Man, that guy was a jerk. Always acted so ‘noble’ and ‘selfless’ when in reality he was just chasing a title.” He stretched out and propped his arms up behind his head. “Looks like we’re going to have matching scars, kid. How about that.”

“How’d you die? Was it that kid?” You leaned forward.

“What? You think so low of me? As if. There was an ‘accident’ in Radiant Gard- er- Hollow Bastion. Took me and a few others. Zexion, Vexen, Lexaeus. What’s your story? Never heard you talk about your original self before.”

“Oh, I-” Your face reddened and you looked away. “It wasn’t interesting.”

“Come on. I’m curious now.”

“I don’t remember a whole lot. There was someone. I think I was engaged. They, uh, died in an ambulance.” Your voice caught in your throat on the last word. Tears stung the backs of your eyes.

“What were they like?” Xigbar’s voice was soft, unlike him.

“They were unreal. I remember thinking they were an angel. Very protective, always by my side. I had to propose because they kept putting it off, but when I took out the box, they pulled one out too. We were at the zoo, I think. My mom never liked them. I don’t know what she said to me that night, but it-” You stopped, suddenly unable to catch your breath. Xigbar rushed to your side, putting a hand on your shoulder.

“Hey, it’s okay. Talking about this stuff is hard. It took me months just to talk to them again.” Your eyes were open, but you weren’t seeing anything. A lone tear rolled down your cheek and splashed on your shorts. “Why don’t we change the subject, huh? We got you a new coat.” He stood and went over to your closet and pulled out a coat. It didn’t look any different than your old one.

“How is that a ‘new’ coat?” You said, wiping your tears with your hand. Xigbar smiled one of those rare, genuine smiles and gave it to you.

“Come on. Just look at it. Tailored to your size. Shorter, tighter sleeves that don’t catch your vines. Took forever to convince the seamstress in Twilight Town to take the zipper up more so you could move better.”

You held the folded coat in your hands, feeling how seamless the new alterations were. You lifted the sleeve and caught sight of a silvery thread. Looking inside, you saw two embroidered letters.  _ XV. _ You glanced up and saw Xigbar smiling, arms crossed.

“Look at you. Didn’t know the janitor could smile.” You weren’t smiling, right?

“I am not!” You quickly dropped the sleeve and turned away.

“I had that one specially made for you. Knew you were dealing with old hand me down coats from Zexion, so I thought I’d make it yours.” Xigbar walked toward you, pat you on the back, and turned to leave. “Get some rest, kiddo.”

As he left, you took another look at the coat, feeling warmth spread through your chest. That’s odd. You thought Nobodies didn’t have hearts. Well, who cares, anyway? Axel and Roxas don’t seem to, so why should you? You closed your eyes and fell back onto the bed, sleep slowly taking you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this wasn't too out of character for Xigbar. I've always seen him as a bit of a fatherly figure, sort of like the Master of Masters. Felt like he needed to be a little bit soft, you know? Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! Feel free to check out some of my other works until I get the next chapter up.


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